ISLAMABAD: Pakistan International Airlines on Sunday dismissed as false a social media claim alleging that the entire crew of one of its flights had gone missing during a layover in Toronto, saying the report was circulated to defame the national carrier and the country.
In a statement issued after the claim gained traction online, the airline said no such incident had occurred and described the report as “fake news.”
“A tweet circulated by certain anti-Pakistan quarters claiming that the whole crew of a particular PIA flight is missing is entirely baseless,” the airline said in a post on X, adding that the content appeared intended to malign PIA and Pakistan.
The clarification followed posts on social media platforms suggesting that a PIA flight crew had disappeared while abroad. PIA said the information was misleading and had no factual basis.
According to local media reports, the airline spokesperson said the claim originated from accounts hostile to Pakistan and was aimed at damaging the airline’s reputation.
In the past, isolated cases have been reported in which individual crew members remained abroad during layovers. PIA has said it introduced measures, including retaining passports with station managers and adjusting crew deployment on certain routes, to address the issue.
PIA is currently included in the government’s privatisation plan for state-owned enterprises under Pakistan’s programme with the International Monetary Fund. The airline has recently regained access to some international routes after earlier operational restrictions in the UK and Europe were lifted.
